2 Corinthians 11:1-4

2 Corinthians 11:1-4

Would that you all were patient with me in a small amount of foolishness.  Rather be patient with me!  I am jealous of you all by a jealousy of God, for I promised you all in marriage to one husband, to present a pure virgin to Christ.  For I am afraid lest somehow – as the serpent deceived Eve in his evil cunning – your reasoning should be perverted from a singleness in purpose and a moral purity into Christ.  For if in one case the one who comes preaches another Jesus that we did not preach – or you all receive a different spirit that you did not receive or another Gospel that you all did not receive – you all are just as patient with it.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Paul paints a really neat picture here in this passage.  This is what he calls “foolishness.”  Paul compares himself and the Corinthians to a father who has a daughter promised in marriage.  One of the father’s main tasks is to teach purity to his daughter and then protect the purity of his daughter.  Paul feels responsible for the Corinthians because he is the one who first taught them about Christ.  He doesn’t want to see them fall away.  He doesn’t want to see them slip away into religious impurity.  While he knows that they are people who are accountable for their own decisions, it is also clear that Paul feels a certain responsibility for their spiritual decisions as well.

Do you understand what Paul is feeling for the Corinthians?  Why does this make sense?  Have you ever felt this way about another person and their spirituality?

Second Thought:

There is another interesting point in this passage.  When we talk specifically about that which Paul fears, he fears that they will be diverted from their singleness of purpose into Christ.  Paul knows how easy it is to go through life having several things pulling at our interests.  What is it that Jesus Himself says?  You cannot serve two masters.  Paul isn’t worried that they would become completely corrupt.  Paul is worried that their attention will be distracted away from God’s purpose for them in Corinth.  Satan doesn’t need to get us to do evil in order to win.  Satan just needs to distract us from giving God our full attention.

How easily are you distracted by the world away from God’s purpose in your life?  Why is this true for you?  How can you stay focused on God in those areas in which you do lose focus easily?

Third Thought:

Then Paul gives examples.  The Corinthians are willing to put up with different religious teachers who teach different things than full reliance upon Jesus.  They are willing to listen to hear about a different spirit of God than the one they received when Paul and his associates were among them.  In other words, they are wishy-washy about what they believe.  They are willing to tolerate all kinds of thinking beside what they were taught about Jesus and what He did for mankind.

Do you think this is a problem that Christians in the Western world struggle with today?  Why or why not?  What is the problem with being willing to tolerate any kind of preaching?

Passage for Tomorrow: 2 Corinthians 11:5-6